Defeated Rep. Joe Walsh mulling run for Illinois governor

Remember Joe Walsh? Ahhh…how soon we forget. He’s the erstwhile Tea Party Republican congressman from Illinois who was trounced by Iraq War Vet and double amputee Tammy Duckworth last month.

On Saturday, Walsh conducted his (hopefully) last “town hall” meeting with about 200 stalwart supporters in suburban Chicago. The topic de jour, of course, was his political future.

In the past, he’s referred to himself as the "poorest member of Congress," and therefore will be looking for a job come next month. But, if nothing comes along right away, Walsh said, he is open to challenging Democratic Party Gov. Pat Quinn in the 2014 gubernatorial race in Illinois.

"Am I going to run again? Here's what I know: We're losing our America. I have been called, in whatever role, to play a role trying to get this back," Walsh said Saturday, according to a report posted by the Illinois Review blog. "Whether that means I run again, who knows?"

In assessing the presidential race, Walsh commented, according to CBS Chicago, that Mitt Romney’s major mistake was not embracing his personal wealth and refusing to apologize for it.

As far as running for governor is concerned, Walsh indicated that he may, indeed, run for governor. But wait! He’s also willing to serve as a television pundit (presumably at Fox News, of course).

Duckworth defeated Walsh by just short of 10 percentage points. Theirs was one of several “hot” races in the country which drew wide attention. When Duckworth was told that Walsh may be running for governor, she was graceful to a fault. That’s "pretty amazing, she said." Then she offered this: “Walsh has a history of running for office and failing. If he thinks his extremist rhetoric is going to win over the state, then it’s a free country and he’s welcome to try it."

Let’s look at some of soon-to-be former Congressman Joe Walsh’s “extremist rhetoric” to get a better understanding of why he was so resoundingly rejected by the good people of the 8th Congressional District of Illinois -- after just one term.

On whether his opponent Tammy Duckworth’s loss of both legs in the Iraq War is a “true hero”:

“Now I’m running against a woman who, my God, that’s all she talks about. Our true heroes, it’s the last thing in the world they talk about.”

On public sector jobs: At a Gurnee, Illinois “town hall” meeting, Walsh interrupted some of his own constituents discussing bank lobbyists in congress:

“Don’t blame banks, and don’t blame the marketplace for the mess we’re in right now! I am tired of hearing that crap! This pisses me off!”

On President Obama’s first win: In a May, 2011 Slate Magazine interview, Walsh said:

“Why was he elected? Again, it comes back to who he was. He was black. He was historic.”

Again, on Duckworth’s war injuries, Politico has him saying this in a March interview:

“I have so much respect for what she did in the fact that she sacrificed her body for this country. Ehhh. Now, let’s move on.”

In an April speech in Schaumburg, Ill., he explained why Hispanics and blacks love the “Democrat” Party:

“Democrats want Hispanics to be dependent on government just like they got African-Americans dependent on government. That’s their game.”

"He’s our first African-American president. The country voted for him because of that.” (Another “town hall” in April).

There is, of course, much more, but we’re only allotted so much space for these reports. Perhaps when Walsh becomes governor of Illinois, though, we will be able to more extensively report on his comings and goings, doings and sayings. OK?

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